Shopping habits are so ingrained that we many times buy certain foods without giving them more than a nanosecond of thought. At Pete’s Fresh Market on New Year’s Eve, however, I discovered this grocery store has lots of different kinds of sweet potatoes. I suddenly felt an urge to extend the horizons of my sweet potato eating experiences.
Japanese sweet potatoes ($2.49/lb.) caught my eye: Their skin is a deep purplish-red, and inside a light yellow. These are fantastic spuds and (at least for me) exotic: the interior is lush and soft, richly sweet but with other subtler flavors.
Googling, I found an article written just last month by Joe Yonan (Food and Dining editor, Washington Post) titled, “Japanese Sweet Potatoes Are the Best,” in which he concluded, “Which do I love more, their flavor or their texture? Hard to say. They taste like buttery chestnuts, and when you bake them, their interiors get so fluffy, thanks to less moisture, they taste like a cross between a white Russet and an orange Beauregard — and somehow more appealing than either.”
Orange Beauregard? Clearly, I had to do more research on non-standard sweet potatoes.
Then on New Year’s Day, I was back at Pete’s, searching for more exotic sweet potatoes. The long, cigar-like Stoke purple sweet potatoes ($3.99/lb.) look like no other. From North Carolina, the Stokes’ purpleness is key to their nutritional value: the color indicates anthocyanin antioxidants (also found in blueberries), and they contain a good amount of vitamin C and fiber.
Less sweet than the more familiar orange sweet potatoes, this variety is somewhat dry though perhaps more versatile (because less sweet) than other varieties. To bring out the best flavor, which some describe as “floral,” Southern Living magazine suggests cooking a little longer than other sweet potato varieties: 350 degrees for 90-120 minutes. Our experience is that cooking any sweet potato a little longer will yield a creamier interior.
Jersey white sweet potatoes ($3.99/lb.) look a lot like regular white potatoes, inside and out, though with slightly yellow flesh that was maybe a touch moister than most white potatoes. Perhaps nutty in flavor, the Jersey also brought slight citrus notes that made the taste of this sweet spud stand apart from others. Such sweetness could vary based on the environment where the potatoes were grown.
As you can see from the parenthetical prices listed above, these lesser-known sweet potato varieties cost more than the standard, but they offer new tastes experiences, and they’re kind of fun to serve and eat.
We’re also very much in favor of supporting less popular varieties of fruits and vegetables; if farmers make a profit growing smaller, delicious varieties of somewhat obscure produce, they’ll grow more of them and that’s better for the biodiversity of the planet. And it keeps our dinner table interesting.
And hey, if you spot any local stores offering Beauregard sweet potatoes, please shoot me an email: david@dchammond.com
David Hammond writes a blog for Oak Park Eats.